Marnitz Nienaber

I have been part of one off the wattsup groups, the current group with it's members will merge into other events during the year, Mike Woolnough is the administrator of this group, he is also part of this topic and if you want to be part of the wattsup group please send Mike a personal message with your phone number. I must say that on one stage we were more than 300 on the group and if you don't have limitless data you are going to be out of data very soon with all the pictures, comments and video posted. The magic of the wattsup group is that it's live 24/7 there are allways dot watchers at all times of the day, which means that one is receiving updates at all times, it also means that you will never be able to sleep or work, which is nice. I have posted this like on the wattsup group, it is also available on the Freedom Challenge main page. The nice thing about this topic is that we can share advice for any blanket aspirations, we have used it with great success in the past and I think that should be the main aim of this page, assisting others in succeeding in their blanket dreams and preparing for the next Freedom Challenge event.

Once again it has been another magic life changing year, fortunately for me I find myself now in the middle of the country and right in the middle of the RASA. Thanks Carl for starting the topic, I think myself and Tim is getting older and hopefully wiser, might be the reason why we weren't racing, or possibly unfit and scared of the racing snakes. I have been speaking to a lot of the newly and old blanket wearers about the soul purpose of this unique race, why are we competing or what is it that we want out of this race and I would like to have some comments from the dot watchers perspective as well as the blanket wearers. Watching everyone finish brings a smile and tears at the same time and a lot of fomo, I had a look at a lot of pictures taken during my years and basically 3 years stood out : My first year doing most of it on my own and getting to grips with the real Freedom Challenge and it's emotionsThe year doing it with Ivor Jones, didn't enjoy it at the time but watching the pictures we had a ball of a time while doing some crazy stuff.My last year ( Hopefully not my last year ) due to my gentle soft marsmellow texture, I couldn't race but instead I saw a lot of places previously unseen. Since turning into a gentle soft marsmellow not being able to dice, I would like to share knowledge about the race and if you give me enough time I might also be available as a guide on the shorter races and if I'm lucky enough to get a sponsor I might be racing Tim Bivvy style next year. You are more than welcome to contact me on email marnitzn@ovk.co.za or 0837619606 I will gladly try to assist with advice needed, it might not always be the best advice, like for instance going up the waterfall in Stetteyns but it will be helpfull.......

When you're a professional athlete , you know what not to take, no excuses....

and it will have 1 x 14 gears, or an internal gearbox maybe they can call it a very expensive Rholloff hub worx

and so the marketing strategy continues.........

You can play with tyre sizes to get the same advantage. Tyre circumference according to cat eye : 26" x 2.1 2068mm 26" x 2.35 2083mm 650 x 20C 1938mm 650 x 23C 1944mm 650 x 35A 2090mm 650 x 38A 2125mm The different size bikes and gears are only a market ploy by manufacturers to stimulate sales, it all depend on the engine, in this case you, the one that's pushing the pedals......... My argument remain the same, if a bigger circumference was so good, why don't they use it on downhill bikes, and why has a BMW GS 1200 off road bike got 17" wheels and not 29" ? Why hasn't the road bikes changed to 29" ? Are we been lead by our noses by the manufacturers ??? Only asking ??? PS I think the manufactures will get hold of your idea and in the couple of years time when the 650B crase has died down, they will build your 29" Front 650B rear and change the UCI rules.

Any kind of Windhoek will do, but I prefer Windhoek Draught, give me legs for the next day. If I need more legs to give the oaks a proper hiding I will consume a couple of glasses of lekke Red Wine, Diemersfontein Pinotage is my favorite. Around the camp fire I will make use of Richeleu and coke, will only need two to amuse the crowd....... The best thing about being fit is that you don't need to many to be happy :w00t:

Thanks again for every pledge all of you made, all my rough sleeps are documented on my blog www.afreedomexperience.blogspot.com The banking details are as follow : Name : Freedom Trail Foundation Bank : FNB Branch code : 00254905 Branch : Cresta Account No : 624 7344 9356 Reference : Marnitz Nienaber Till we race again !!!

Thank you very much for all your support and the pledges you made. I will post photo's of all my rough sleep places. Here are a list of the nights out : Boshelweni forrest Tinana sheppard's hut Abandoned farmstead Elliot turn off on the way to Chesney World Abandoned sheep shearing shed Rossow Stormberg Block House Sheep shearing shed before Tam Safari's Struishoek Bucklands Bergplaas Baviaans Anysberg

You don't have to worry a bit about their welfare, there a lots of friendly people who will take the in as if they are family. If they don't find a home they will spend the best night ever under the stars and for years to come they will talk about that night. Ask the container brother hood, still talking about it. Remember God is watching them from the sky, He will keep them in safe hands. Enjoy PS I will be on the look out for them and give them your best wishes.

If you don't pack maps you won't get lost.........

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More about the rough sleep madness on www.afreedomexperience.blogspot.com I will try to update every night, depending on battery life & coverage and if I'm sleeping or racing during the night.......

I might have gone completely mad, but here is my plan. First of all this plan is not about me, it is about what you can do for charity. This plan will only depend on your involvement and how much you want to make a difference in someone's life and how big a smile you want to put on their face. The plan is for you to make a pledge from R 1 to whatever per night that I sleep rough on the Freedom Challenge. Sleeping rough will mean that I don't sleep in a support station, intermediate support station or any other accommodation where we normally have to pay a fee including farmers letting me stay for free. Sleeping rough will thus mean, sleeping under the stars, or sleeping in an open abandoned house / hut or kraal where no fee is charged. You the life changer may make a pledge per night, that will be collected afterwards and I will donate all the pledges to charity. Now is this a mad plan and are you willing to make a change in a life.

Yes I do prepare a few nights before the challenge, just to get the body use to sleep on a hard surface, I have got a buvvy, which I pull over my face to prevent cold air from entering into my igloo. Normally the Freedom Challenge tire you down so much that you do sleep, but the cold prevent you from sleeping more than 3 hours..... The Freedom Challenge is a life changing must do, just do it !!!

Time is near and it's getting colder by the day ! Will my sleeping bag be warm enough to withstand -1 to -14ºC, will my body and mind last to endure the Freedom Challenge elements ? From past experiences I've learned that : "The Body goes where the Mind goes !" I will have to keep focusing on my objectives, to ride as far as possible every day and to finish in the quickest time possible, the longer you take to finish, the more your body endure and the bigger the scars....... My objective is to demolish my 15 Day barrier. Fitness ? Well Boet Werner had to wait a lot for me during the Sani, I think he might be a lot stronger than me at the moment, maybe because he got a bit of a fright last year, or it might be that I am not properly trained. He is leaving 2 days ahead of me and it might be a good challenge to chase him down. Luckily for me by the time I reach Rhodes the fitness should be up to standard.......... I am still in need of a lot of pledges !!! Please feel free to make a pledge, it could be anything from R10 per rough sleep to whatever you're happy to plegde. All the pledges will be donated to the Freedom Challenge Scholarship Fund. Pledges can be made on the hub or on my blog http://www.afreedomexperience.blogspot.com/ Because of the limited time charging batteries and battery life of my cellphone, I would only be able to make posts on my blog while racing, depending on cell coverage I would attempt to do a post before I got to rough sleep every night. I want to thank everybody that is willing to make a pledge, thank you for giving me the opportunity with your pledges to make a difference in a child's life. To the rest of the Challengers, may our Heavenly Father be with you every peddle and every step of the way, may He guard you all the way and may everyone of you succeed in your objective ! You are on the verge of a life changing experience !!!!

If I don't get enough pledges I will have to sleep rough at Diemers.......... I don't plan any serious mechanics, that's why I'm riding a 26" Cannondale Rush As this will be my very last Freedom Challenge......I hope......I will be planning to do it in as quick as possible time, however I couldn't get my plans to work during the last 4 attempts.........That might be the reason for returning...... My plan is to sleep rough as much as possible to get as many pledges as possible, if the body holds I will try to sleep rough all the way, however I have promised Sandra from Vaalbank a sleep over (have never slept there) will see how the riding goes...... You can only sleep rough for about 3 hours during the night, so if I want more sleep I will have to do more night riding, keeping you all awake and then sleep more during daylight hours......... The plan is to chase Scott and his gang all the way to Rhodes, and then to chase my nose all the way to Diemersfontein :w00t:

One week and a month from start date, hopefully I have done enough training to complete the race in my planned time. For me it always feel if I could have done more, if ever you can do enough training for the Freedom Challenge......... I now only need to keep the focus on the last month's training, it's getting more difficult by the day, it might be the dirt roads that is in very poor condition. You know the condition is bad when a bakkie is unable to overtake you on a dirt road, I am mostly sticking to the friendly farmers jeep tracks, don't get the desired distance but a 100% peace of mind and no swearing !!!! Butterflies in the tummy, I will just have to make it happen. At least I don't have any second thoughts about making it happen, just need to push as far as possible every day !!!!!

Start date confirmed : 15th June 2014 Now to put in some mileage.......

So here are the rough sleep rules as compiled by David Waddilove....... I will eat and sleep at the start and the finish. There are 25 support stations where I will receive meals, shower and charge batteries. There are 5 interim stops where I can call in for soup or whatever food they offer. I am allowed to make use of 6 support /interim stops for emergency accommodation. A support station is the house and a radius of 2 km's around it. If I spend more than 2 hours at any support station it will be counted as a sleep. Les than 12 weeks to go, time to start sleeping rough !!!!

I normally use the back wheel for a very comfy cushion......... in the past the umlungu was more worried about hungry leopards, luckily this time around there won't be to many a chance to bath so the smell of a LION will keep them away......... Sleeping rough up until Rhodes will have to be in the early morning hours to go undetected and I suspect a lot of very late nights for some tracker followers, I have got a few places in mind but will keep them for security reasons for myself. I'm still very much in love with my tried and tested 26"Cannondale Rush, won't take any chances.

The First Ascent Adventure light sleeping bag, no alarm clock needed the cold will wake me in 3 hours time. The advantage it's light and it has proofed itself in the past years.

So I'm strategising.....what is the best time to got to bed when you're sleeping rough ???? What kind of gear will I need to survive the cold ?? What will I eat and drink before I go to bed ??? How will I prevent the rain from entering my bed ???? So many but's and if's and so little time..........

Hope I would be able to take the load and move the earth for their charity.